The Council of Graduate Schools has approved the university’s master degree programs in resource management and conservation, and environmental studies for affiliation as Professional Science Master’s programs. The recognition confirms that the programs effectively train students to be both scholars and practitioners.

Three faculty members have been awarded Sustainability Course Development Fellowships for 2012. Courses to be developed include "Pleasure, Pain and Peak Oil," "Hands-on LEED for Existing Buildings on Campus” and "Cheaper is not Better, Zero is: Sustainable product development starts with students." The fellowship program supports efforts to enhance instruction of topics related to sustainability and environmental literacy.

The university's new bachelor’s degree program focuses on social, cultural and environmental dynamics in communities, cities and nations, and will include a community development concentration. Students will examine how these dynamics impact the development of sustainable systems.

The university's new major, set to launch this fall, will include introductory sustainability courses, electives and an applied learning experience. Students will have the opportunity to choose from two concentrations in public communication or science.

The university has redesigned its Master of Business Administration program to focus on globalization, communication and sustainability. Starting this fall, students will be able to choose from seven different concentrations.

Starting in fall 2012, the university will offer a new Master of Public Affairs with a concentration in urban sustainability and a Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs in sustainable management and policy. At the undergraduate level, students will learn the principles of sustainability, sustainable management, environmental justice and green technologies. At the graduate level, students will take courses in areas including urban sustainability, environmental conflict resolution, cost-benefit analysis, and natural resource management.

The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ new environmental science and sustainability major will debut in fall 2013. The curriculum will integrate physical, chemical, biological and social sciences with humanities with proposed concentration areas including environmental biology and applied ecology; environmental policy and governance; biogeochemical sciences; and environmental economics.

Financed by a $458,000 Department of Labor grant, the new lab serves as a training facility for the installation of geothermal heating and cooling units. The facility includes a 60-gallon solar thermal water heater, 12 solar panels and an electric car charging station. With funding from a federal grant, renewable energy training at the college is offered at no cost to participants.

The new interdisciplinary program will cover ecological, economic, political and social systems as they relate to food and farming. Working with the University of Massachusetts Amherst to create a permaculture garden on campus, the college will also offer courses in permaculture, botany and horticulture. In addition, students can select courses from a "re-skilling series" in areas including beekeeping, four-season farming, mushroom foraging and cultivation, and creating a cooperative food economy.

The university has announced plans to expand its environmental and life sciences program to the New Jersey Highlands, a 2 million acre region in New Jersey that provides more than half of the state with drinking water. As part of a preservation and management program, students and faculty will research the impacts of climate change in the ecosystem, and biochemical processes related to landscape management in this living laboratory setting.

The recently launched environment, economy, development and sustainability major is a multidisciplinary degree program that focuses on the human dimensions of sustainability. Coursework includes environmental economics, business management, environmental sociology, community and international development, ecological engineering and environmental sciences. Students will have the opportunity to specialize in one of four areas including sustainability and business, environmental economics and policy analysis, community development and international development.

(Germany): The new online MBA in renewable energies, launched by the Beuth University of Applied Sciences Berlin and Renewables Academy, will prepare participants to deal with renewable energy technologies including their economics, policy and legal frameworks.

(U.S.): The university's new online professional certificate program in renewable energy will explore technologies that can transform how energy is obtained, distributed and stored. Program participants will also learn about opportunities to develop and market new technologies.

(U.K.): The university's new environmental technology renewable energy graduate degree will prepare students for the wind, wave and tidal power sectors. Starting in September, students will have the opportunity to examine key scientific and technical principles underlying a range of renewable energy technologies; learn about product design and life cycles; develop research and analytical skills relevant to renewable energy resource analysis; and gain practical experience through industry placements with integrated dissertation projects.

Business professor Scott Herriott at Maharishi University of Management (Iowa) has formed a consortium of universities that will offer MBA courses on sustainability during this year's summer session. The Summer MBA Sustainability Consortium now includes the Bainbridge Graduate Institute (Washington), Brandeis University (Massachusetts), Marylhurst University (Oregon), Seattle Pacific University (Washington), University of Denver (Colorado), University of Maine and University of Vermont. Students at any member school will be able to take courses in environmental law, sustainable technologies and green investing.

In spring 2013, student participants will be able to live and take courses together that address themes of human sustainability from a variety of disciplines. Located on a farm, the students will work on-site to grow food and build energy-efficient structures. The semester will also include an urban component where students spend two weeks in either Boston or New York to explore issues such as transportation, housing, food access, pollution and environmental justice.

The institute, which focuses entirely on renewable energy and sustainability, has partnered with Veterans Green Jobs to enhance opportunities for military veterans in the green job sector. Sixty-seven students at the institute are military veterans or currently serving in the military.

Encompassing agriculture, business, health, economy, environment and international relations, the new academic field of food studies is "taking shape in an expanding number of colleges and universities," reports a recent New York Times article. Tailoring programs to their geographic areas and demographics, institutions are preparing students for new careers in food safety reform; local-food businesses and anti-obesity; equity and climate efforts; and broader contexts of traditional disciplines like culinary arts and farming.

The college’s hybrid and electric car battery research will be developed into a curriculum to share with students, local technicians, fellow community colleges and businesses. The program, which is developing a 30-credit hybrid-training certificate, has partnered with two local repair shops to look at how they can provide better and more affordable repair work for hybrid and electric cars.

Starting in the fall, the university's new urban agriculture minor will allow students to study issues of social and environmental justice, food security, sustainability and ecology through hands-on engagement. The university's new Urban Farming Organization has also begun constructing a campus urban farm that will complement the curriculum and educate the public about how to establish and enjoy sustainable food production systems.

Funded by a Nebraska Energy Office grant, the new facility will provide a real-world work area for solar, sustainability and horticulture students to learn and practice new technologies; lab area for practicums and funded studies; and an area to demonstrate conservation building practices and solar technology. Students at the college assisted with the assembly of the eight-panel solar system, water tank and radiant tubing as part of the college's hands-on classes on solar energy and technology.

(U.S.): Beginning this fall, students will have the opportunity to obtain a B.S., B.A. and Bachelor of Business Administration in sustainability. Interdisciplinary courses will include sustainability concepts within sociology, math, statistics, business, philosophy, economics, management, law and ethics. The program will also have a community component focused on experiential learning.

(U.S.): A 7.5-kilowatt wind turbine will provide energy to the campus and educational opportunities for students, outside entrepreneurs and local K-12 schools. Faculty will develop hands-on curriculum for students interested in wind power.

Students will have the opportunity to obtain certificates in construction, renewable energy and residential performance and efficiency. Beyond the general core courses, one business elective is required.

The university’s Urban Farm project, a program of the Landscape Architecture department and the Student Sustainability Center, has received $42,000 from the Associated Students of the University of Oregon's Over-Realized Fund to help secure more land and resources to meet increasing student interest. The funding will expand the farm to three new lots and create another graduate teaching fellow position to help with hands-on instruction, allowing more students to be involved with the farm.

The program, slated to begin in May, is designed to teach students the mechanics of sustainable project development and evaluation. Students will take 15 hours of sustainability courses including "Sustainable Investing" and "Real Estate Analysis."

The new Emory University (Georgia) Continuing Education certificate debuts this May with its first course, "Organizational Change for Sustainability." The program has no prerequisites and covers aspects of sustainability including equity, economy and environment.

As the New School (New York) constructs its new University Center, students in this semester’s "Displaying Sustainable Buildings" course are working on ways to present the building's green features in a way that will influence user behaviors. The students are thinking beyond data streams that track the building's energy and water use to "reactive design" features like lighting fixtures that highlight the fact that they are LEDs or faucets that draw attention to the water that is being used.

(U.S.): ​The green energy training opportunities at community colleges are an integral part of increasing energy efficiency and decreasing the country’s dependence on foreign oil, President Barack Obama said during a recent visit to Prince George's Community College (Maryland). Reported by the American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) Community College Times, the president said that community colleges are "the surest path to success in this economy."

(U.S.): The academic component of the University of Pennsylvania's Climate Action Plan was recognized in the International Sustainable Campus Network's inaugural Global University Leaders Forum Charter report. The university, which became a charter member of the forum in 2010, offers more than 160 sustainability-related courses as part of its goal of making climate change and sustainability part of an educational experience available to all students and the campus community at large.

(U.S. and Brazil): Houston Community College (Texas), Jackson Community College (Michigan) and Red Rocks Community College (Colorado) have partnered with Brazilian organizations for science and math workforce development. U.S. students are headed to Salvador, Brazil in June to help improve the English skills of 200 Brazilian technical high school students while participating in an intensive program focused on Brazil’s sustainability technology and innovation.

Green Mountain College's (Vermont) new renewable energy and ecological design undergraduate major, set to launch in fall 2012, will engage students in hands-on design and building projects that benefit the college and local community.

LIU Post (formerly the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University in New York) has announced a new Master of Science in Environmental Sustainability, to begin September 2012. The program will incorporate both traditional scientific methods and modern technologies including Geographic Information Systems to prepare graduates to address the challenges facing governments, nonprofits and businesses in ensuring the long-term sustainability of the environment and energy resources. A special focus and emphasis will be placed on applying these skills and knowledge to the Long Island/New York City metropolitan area.

The new Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Built Environments at the University of Arizona’s College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture will focus on design, planning, open space and recreation, sustainable ecosystems, sustainable communities and housing, and heritage conservation. The program will launch in fall 2012.

The University of Calgary's (Alberta) new four-course graduate program will tackle climate change, consumerism, ecological literacy, ethics and environmental design from a broad range of disciplines including philosophy, education, physics and architecture.

Expanding on a previously offered minor, the University of Wisconsin-Platteville's new sustainable and renewable energy systems major will feature technology and project management tracks that cover sustainability, wind and solar energy, building efficiency, biomass energy and project management.

Okanagan College (BC) has received a $100,000 gift from Great-West Life, half of which will be used to develop a three-year sustainable construction management technology program. The program has already received support from the Applied Science Technologists & Technicians of British Columbia and major construction firms. The other half of the donation will cover capital costs for the college's Centre for Excellence.

Saint Louis University (MO) has launched an accelerated Master of Sustainability degree program. The Center for Sustainability gives undergraduate students a head start on the program with the option to complete up to one full year of graduate coursework prior to enrollment, allowing them to complete the degree in one year.

The University of California, Berkeley’s College of Chemistry has received a $3.5 million gift from the Dow Chemical Company Foundation to design a new curriculum based on the principles of sustainability and green chemistry. The lab curriculum will be revised to incorporate sustainability into every experiment. The funding will also be used to renovate the teaching labs to be more energy-efficient.

Illinois State University’s Department of Management and Quantitative Methods has announced a new minor in business environment and sustainability. The program is designed to help organizations hire trained and competent professionals to champion sustainability initiatives within the organization. Course subjects will include foundations in sustainability, environmental systems and social systems.

Southeast Community College (NE) has installed a 1.6-kilowatt wind turbine with a $318,333 grant from the Nebraska Energy Office to develop renewable energy curricula. Students in its energy generation operations program will use the turbine as part of their training.

Students in an "Environment, Agriculture, and Food: Economic and Policy Analysis" course at the University of Chicago (IL) are partnering with restaurant owners to create a green certification program for Chicago restaurants. Students have begun by reviewing existing building and operating standards for restaurants in the area, as well as existing green certifications for industries such as buildings, hotels and businesses. Students are acting as advisors to the Chicago Green Restaurant Coalition.

Students at the Wood County Technical Center (WV) have built a model house to be used as a solar lab for West Virginia University at Parkersburg's solar energy technology programs. Students in the program will receive hands-on experience with the model including the opportunity to install solar panels.

Cambridge College (MA) has created a social justice teaching concentration for its Master of Education in interdisciplinary studies. The program will use diverse written and visual texts from around the world to address the systemic structures that lead to domination and oppression. Students will also be introduced to alternative world views with hopes to inspire them to teach and communicate in ways that will promote justice and compassion.

Fleming College (ON) has partnered with the Royal Ontario Museum to launch an environmental visual communication graduate certificate program. Taught on-site at the museum, the six-month program will focus on strategic messaging and technical savvy, teaching students to use photography, videography, multimedia and design principles to bridge environmental competencies with thoughtful communication. Students will study ways to identify strategies to inform and educate, garner engagement and support, and build and share campaigns to address conservation issues.

Kansas-based Flint Hills Technical College and Emporia State University have partnered to offer a sustainability studies program this fall. The program will allow students to receive an associate degree at the technical college and then pursue a bachelor’s degree at the university. The technical college curriculum will focus on alternative energy, green building practices and local food systems, while the university curriculum will explore specified interests, politics and ethics.

San Diego State University (CA) will begin offering a water management and landscape sustainability online certificate in March. The program is designed to prepare students for occupations in the water conservation industry and will explore new areas of development in the region including desalination and water purification plants.

The George Washington University (DC) has announced a new minor in sustainability beginning this fall. Developed based on student interest and employers' demand for students with sustainability education, the minor will include tracks in science and engineering; human well-being and society; and policy, governance and leadership.

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The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education is a membership association of colleges & universities, businesses, and nonprofits who are working together to lead the sustainability transformation. Learn more about AASHE's mission.